Ben Hill County - Georgia

Ben Hill County Courthhouse

County Seat: Fitzgerald
Incorporated: July 31, 1906
Population: 17,484
Total Area: 251.8 Square miles

Ben Hill County was created in 1906, from Irwin and Wilcox counties, and was named for Benjamin Harvey Hill, U.S. Senator from Georgia, a Whig leader, and a staunch opponent of Reconstruction.

The Historic District on South Lee and South Main streets in Fitzgerald is listed on the National Register. The old railroad depot is now home to the Blue/Gray Museum.

The county has only one incorporated city, Fitzgerald, which was founded by former Union soldiers on a 50,000 acre tract owned by the non-profit American Tribune Soldiers Colony Company. The citizens of Fitzgerald, pledging unity with their former enemies, named streets after leaders of both armies. The early concentration of population in the city aided the county's industrial development. The colony also founded the first public school in Georgia to offer free books and tuition.

Events include the Blues and Grays Festival in October, the Ebony-in-Arts Festival in the Spring, Colony City Chase in October and the Fourth of July Celebration.